Rule 5 pick Araujo earns roster spot
Cobb might debut April 9; Beckham being careful
SARASOTA, FLA. – The Orioles plucked right-hander Pedro Araujo from the Chicago Cubs in December’s Rule 5 draft, making him one of three pitchers the club selected in hopes of supplementing their major league pitching staff.
But over the course of the spring, Araujo went from relative unknown, his locker in the Orioles clubhouse in Sarasota tucked into the corner, to earning an Opening Day bullpen spot.
Araujo, 24, was called into a room by some of the Orioles’ veteran relievers Friday, thinking he was in trouble, before he was told by his fellow bullpen mates that he had made the team.
“I was very surprised when I opened the door and I see these guys over here, [Darren] O’Day and [Mychal] Givens,” Araujo said through translator Ramón Alarcón. “I’m like, ‘Ok, what did I do wrong here?’ But they told me right away. O’Day said, ‘Do you remember the [pitchers fielding practice]?’ I said, ‘ What, PFP? What are you talking about?’ And then he told me, ‘ You made the team, congratulations,’ so I was very happy.”
Araujo, who came on the Orioles radar with a strong performance in the Arizona Fall League, showed this spring that he was more than a lottery ticket, posting a 2.08 ERA over 82⁄ Grapefruit League innings. Seven of his eight appearances were scoreless, including five outings of at least one innings where he did not allow a base runner. He also had eight strikeouts and issued two walks.
“Good aptitude. Tough kid,” manager Buck Showalter said. He’s very coachable, and then he takes the mound and starts throwing the ball in games, and carries it all over. Changeups. That’s a weapon for him. I don’t know what else he’d have to do for us to say, ‘OK, let’s find out if what we think he could be, could happen.’ He’s a guy that can pop for us.”
Araujo’s ascension comes after spending most of last season pitching at High-A, posting a 1.76 ERA with 87 strikeouts in 662⁄ innings. All all but two of his innings last season, his seventh as a pro, came for the Myrtle Beach Pelicans. Cobb could debut April 9: The Orioles have plotted out a schedule for newly signed right-hander Alex Cobb that would project him making his first major league start as early as April 9 against the Toronto Blue Jays at Camden Yards.
Cobb, 30, is scheduled to throw a three-inning simulated game Sunday at the Ed Smith Stadium main field in which the plan is for him to simulate an entire spring training game-day routine.
Onthat schedule to build his innings count, Cobb would then pitch a four-inning game March 30, then move to five innings April 4.
Depending on whether the Orioles want Cobb to reach the six-inning plateau before being considered ready for the regular season, he could make his Orioles debut his next turn April 9 against the Blue Jays. If it is determined he needs to first get to six innings, that would push his debut back to April 14 on the road in Boston. Being careful with Beckham: Third baseman Tim Beckham said the groin injury that forced him from Thursday’s Grapefruit League game is minor and he sounded confident he’d be in the team’s Opening Day starting lineup at Camden Yards in six days. The club also believes Beckham can avoid a disabled list stint, but is being cautious with the injury.
“I’m not thinking about not playing again in a spring game right now,” Beckham said. “But I’m taking it day by day. I feel like I’m ready for the season. Acouple morereps would be great. I’m definitely confident going into the year that we’re going to have a good season and we’re going to play good baseball.”
Beckham exited Thursday’s game against the Boston Red Sox after just two innings and wasn’t in the starting lineup for Friday afternoon’s game against the Tampa Bay Rays at Ed Smith Stadium. He will receive treatment Friday and today and could resume light activities on Sunday but likely wouldn’t return to a game situation until Monday at the earliest.
“At this point, we don’t anticipate a Orioles pitcher Pedro Araujo posted a 2.08 ERA over 82⁄ Grapefruit League innings and seven of his eight appearances were scoreless. DL but we’ll see what the next few days bring,” Showalter said. Rotation order announced: Showalter said that Andrew Cashner, Kevin Gausman and Chris Tillman will follow Opening Day starter Dylan Bundy for the first four games of the regular season.
Bundy, who will be making his first career Opening Day start, could return on regular four days’ rest in the fifth game of the season. The Orioles don’t need a fifth starter until the following day.
Because Bundy was making such a significant innings jump last season in his first year as a full-time major league starter, Showalter gave him extra days off when he could. But this year, Showalter said Bundy will get regular treatment. Shared workload for closer duties: Asked whether he planned to name an interim closer as Zach Britton works his way back from a ruptured Achilles tendon, Showalter said that righthanders Brad Brach and O’Day would share most closer duties with Givens also possibly receiving opportunities.
Brach handled most of the closer duties when Britton was injured last season — he converted 18 of 22 save opportunities while in the closer role — and O’Day mostly handles setup duties, posting just two saves last season, but has 19 career saves, including six in the 2015 season.